10 Wild Facts About Northern Exposure

Created by Joshua Brand and John Falsey, Northern Exposure—the Twin Peaks-esque sitcom set in small town Cicely, Alaska (population 215)—premiered on CBS during the summer of 1990. (It was almost called Dr. Snow.) For six seasons and 110 episodes, it followed the adventures of New York City doctor Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow) and the misfit denizens (and a moose) who lived in town.

Near the end of its run, ratings suffered—and that was before Morrow left the show midway through the final season, in February 1995. As a replacement, the show cast Paul Provenza as yet another doctor who moves to town. Northern Exposure captivated audiences—including viewers in Poland—because though the show dealt with loss, it didn’t get too heavy-handed. Here are 10 wild facts about the show.

1. FOR THE CREATORS, ALASKA WAS A “STATE OF MIND.”

European movies like Local Hero, My Life as a Dog, Cinema Paradiso, and Amarcord influenced the show’s creators. “America tends not to make those gentle, warm, offbeat character comedies,” co-creator Joshua Brand told Entertainment Weekly. “We always say that we wanted to create Alaska as a state of mind, a place where people could recreate themselves in a nonjudgmental universe.”

2. JANINE TURNER THOUGHT ROB MORROW TRIED TO HIT ON HER.

CBS

The two auditioned together, and as Morrow toldEntertainment Weekly, “When Janine came into the room, it was so clear that she was Maggie.” Morrow said after the audition, they rode in the elevator together. “We’re riding up, and I turn to her and say, ‘It’s just you and me, ya know.’ And she blew me off. Later, she told me she thought I was hitting on her.”

3. THE “AURORA BOREALIS” EPISODE ALMOST DIDN’T AIR.

The episode titled “Aurora Borealis: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups” aired as the season one finale, in 1990. However, CBS execs thought the episode was “too weird” and so they didn’t want to air it. “Once we knew that people did like this episode, my partner and I turned to each other and we said, ‘We can do anything we want on this show,’ and it was incredibly liberating,” Brand told a crowd at the ATX Television Festival. “We understood that the audience was willing to go on any ride we wanted to take them ... It opened up the whole show for us.”

4. ELAINE MILES SPOKE OUT AGAINST NATIVE AMERICAN STEREOTYPES.

CBS

The producers cast Native American actress Elaine Miles as Joel’s receptionist, Marilyn. During the first season, the producers made her talk slowly. “The first scene I did I was supposed to go out and tell Rob that the patients were still talking,” Miles said. “And I said, ‘Can’t I just say, ‘They’re still talking?’ And they said, ‘No, say, ‘They are still talk-ing.’” The producers also made her wear braids, even though she didn’t braid her hair like that in real life.

“The last time I remember wearing braids at home was when I was a little girl, or when I’m in my traditional dress I’ll braid my hair,” she said. “And Mom goes, ‘Well, tell them that.’ So I got up enough nerve to tell them, ‘Well, I don't like what you’re doing with my hair. Can I have it hanging, because Native Americans do let their hair hang down once in a while, and we don’t always wear two braids.’ And then they gradually got into letting me do what I would do with my hair.”

5. ROSLYN THROWS AN ANNUAL NORTHERN EXPOSURE FESTIVAL.

The small town in Washington, located about 80 minutes from Seattle, was the stand-in for Cicely, Alaska. (The Brick bar and other locations were filmed on a soundstage in Redmond, Washington.) When the show was filmed there, it brought jobs and tourism to the economy. Eleven new businesses opened after the show began, and 100 new jobs were created. Coal mining used to be its main economy until that phased out and thousands of people abandoned the town, which currently has a population of 903.

Though tourism dipped when the show went off the air, Roslyn maintains its place in pop culture history. Moosefest takes place every year in the town. Informal Moosefest (hanging out, watching episodes, no scheduled events) took place in July 2017 and formal Moosefest will be held July 27-29, 2018, when actors from the show are expected to attend.

6. MORTY THE MOOSE DIED IN 1994.

CBS

The famous moose that was featured in the opening creditspassed away on January 6, 1994 at the age of five. In captivity, moose live to be less than 10 years old whereas moose in the wild can live to be 16. Morty was part of a behavior and nutrition study, which sought to figure out why moose don’t live as long in captivity. To film Morty walking around the town in the credits, the crew lured him with bananas and willow leaves; he was paid $5000 for his hard work.

7. MORROW HAD A DIFFERENT ENDING IN MIND FOR JOEL.

Morrow and Joel departed the show in February 1995. The final shot featured Joel on a boat in New York Harbor, insinuating that the doctor had returned to his pre-Alaska life. Morrow told People he considered a different trajectory for the doctor. “Josh [Brand] always felt that Joel would go back to New York and would step into the life he always wanted [as a big-city physician],” Morrow said. “I didn't care for that ending. He’s on a boat in New York Harbor in the last shot, but I think of it as mythical rather than literal. I’d like to think Joel moved on and didn’t go back to the life you expected.”

8. JOHN CORBETT REFUSED TO DO PUBLICITY FOR THE SHOW.

John Corbett was cast as radio DJ Chris Stevens, based on a Jack in the Box commercial he starred in. When the show became popular, Corbett hired a publicist and began making appearances on high-profile shows like Entertainment Tonight and The Tonight Show, but things didn’t work out for him, publicity-wise. “I found myself caring more about getting the cover of People Magazine, which I was in the running for at some time, than I cared about the f**king TV show that I was working on that put me in this eye,” Corbett said. “So, the next day I fired my publicist and I never did another press thing ever.” He said he refused to pose for Northern Exposure cast photos, including the reunion ones. “I just went, ‘You know what? I’m just here to act.’”

9. ADAM ARKIN’S CHARACTER WAS BASED ON HIMSELF.

For 10 episodes, Adam Arkin guest starred as a barefooted recluse chef named Adam, and was nominated for a Guest Actor Emmy for his performance. “The way in which he’s played and the level of hostility is mine,” Arkin toldthe Orlando Sentinel. Arkin found his wig in the Northern Exposure wardrobe department. “That’s 90 percent of what clued me into playing Adam,” he said. “I love the guy because he essentially knows everything in the world. You never know what he’s going to be an expert in.”

10. DARREN BURROWS IS TRYING TO REBOOT THE SHOW.

Darren Burrows played Ed Chigliak on the show and published the book Northern Exposed. His production company, Film Farms, is raising money to bring the show back. “Our working title is Northern Exposure: Home Again. We will be authentic. We will remain true to the spirit and values of the show,” Burrows wrote on the show's fundraising page.

At the ATX reunion this summer, the cast—including Morrow—said they'd be open to making another season of Northern Exposure.

A photo from the 1919 wedding of Princess Patricia of Connaught to the Hon. Alexander Ramsay.

Need some St. Patrick's Day conversation fodder that doesn't involve leprechauns or four-leaf clovers? Ask your friends to name a "Pat" born on St. Patrick's Day. If they can't, they owe you a drink—then you can wow them with this list of 10.

1. PRINCESS PATRICIA OF CONNAUGHT

Princess Patricia was the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, who gave up all of her royal titles when she married a commoner. She was born at Buckingham Palace on March 17, 1886.

2. PATRICK DUFFY

The Dallas star was born on March 17, 1949. And here's a totally random fact about Duffy: His nephew is Barry Zito, former MLB pitcher for the Oakland Athletics and the San Francisco Giants.

3. PATTIE BOYD

Larry Ellis, Express/Getty Images

Pattie Boyd is well-known to lovers of classic rock: She has been married three times, including once to George Harrison and once to Eric Clapton, who both wrote a couple of the most romantic songs in rock history in her honor (including The Beatles's "Something" and Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight"). Boyd was a model when she met Harrison on the set of A Hard Day's Night in 1964; the pair were married two years later. They divorced in 1977 and she married Clapton, Harrison's close friend, in 1979. She also had an affair with Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones toward the end of her marriage to The Quiet Beatle.

4. PAT RICE

Belfast-born Pat Rice is a former footballer and coach who spent the bulk of his career with Arsenal F.C. (that's "football club," a.k.a. soccer to us Americans). He joined the Gunners in 1964 as a mere apprentice, turning pro a couple of years later. He became captain in 1977 and left the club for a few years in the early 1980s to go to Watford, but returned after he retired from playing in 1984. In 2012, after nearly 30 years with the organization, he announced his retirement.

5. PATTY MALONEY

Patty Maloney is an actress with dwarfism who stands just three feet, 11 inches tall. She has appeared in many movies and T.V. shows over the years, including operating the Crypt Keeper puppet in Tales from the Crypt. She also played Chewbacca's son Lumpy in The Star Wars Holiday Special.

6. MATHEW ST. PATRICK

HBO

Ok, so Mathew St. Patrick is the stage name of the actor, but he was born Patrick Matthews in Philadelphia on March 17, 1968. You probably know him best as David's boyfriend Keith on Six Feet Under.

7. PATRICK ADAMS

He may not be a household name, but the recording artists Patrick Adams writes for and helps produce certainly are. Adams has been involved in the careers of Salt-N-Pepa, Sister Sledge, Gladys Knight, Rick James, and Coolio, among others.

8. PATRICK MCDONNELL

It's possible you look at Patrick McDonnell's work every day, depending on which comics your newspaper carries. McDonnell draws a strip called Mutts featuring a dog and a cat named Earl and Mooch, respectively. Charles Schulz called it one of the best comic strips of all time.

9. BILLY PATRICK CORGAN

Evan Agostini, Getty Images

Yes, you know him better as just plain old Billy Corgan: he's the face of the Smashing Pumpkins, engages in public feuds with Courtney Love, and maybe once dated Jessica Simpson. He made his debut on March 17, 1967.

10. PATRICIA FORD

Patricia Ford is a retired model probably best known for her Playboy photoshoots in the 1990s.

Released in 2004 to mixed critical reviews but a positive audience response, director Jon Turteltaub’s National Treasure has grown into a perfect rainy-day film. Stumble upon it on a streaming service or a cable channel and the fable about historian-slash-codebreaker Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicolas Cage) excavating the truth about a reputed treasure map on the back of the Declaration of Independence will suck you in. Check out some facts about the movie’s development, its approach to historical accuracy, and why we haven't seen a third film.

1. THE SCRIPT NEEDED NINE WRITERS TO CRACK THE CODE.

Originally planned for a summer 2000 release, National Treasure—based on a concept by Disney marketing head Oren Aviv and DreamWorks television executive Charles Segars—had a Byzantine plot that kept it in a prolonged pre-production period. Nine writers were hired between 1999 and 2003 in an attempt to streamline the story, which sees code-breaker Benjamin Franklin Gates (Cage) pursuing the stash of riches squirreled away by Benjamin Franklin and his Freemason cohorts. Filming finally began in summer 2003 when Marianne and Cormac Wibberley got the script finalized. Turteltaub, who spent three years in development before finally starting production, told Variety that “getting Cage was worth [the wait].”

2. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN REALLY WAS A FREEMASON.

Disney Enterprises, Inc.

Fact and fiction blur considerably in National Treasure, which uses history as a jumping-off point for some major jumps in logic. While it’s not likely the Declaration of Independence has a secret treasure map written on it, Franklin and other Founding Fathers were actually Freemasons. Of the 55 men who signed the document, nine or more belonged to the society.

3. THE CREW USED A BRICK-FOR-BRICK REPLICA OF INDEPENDENCE HALL.

It can be tricky to secure permission to film on government property, which is why producers of National Treasure probably considered themselves fortunate when they discovered that Walter Knott of Knott’s Berry Farm fame had built a perfect replica of Independence Hall on his land in Buena Park, California back in the 1960s. The production used it for a scene requiring Cage to run on the Hall's roof, a stunt that was not likely to have been approved by caretakers of the real thing.

4. THAT $100 BILL REALLY DID HAVE A PRECISE TIME ON THE CLOCK.

One of Cage’s cryptic clues in the film is reading a time of 2:22 on the clock depicted on the image of Independence Hall on the $100 bill. Bills in circulation at that time really did have an illustration that pointed to that exact hour and minute, although it was changed to 10:30 for the 2009 redesign. There’s no given reason for why those times were picked by the Treasury Department, leaving conspiracy theorists plenty to chew on.

5. IT LEFT SOME PEOPLE WONDERING IF THERE REALLY IS A SECRET MAP.

Speaking with The Washington Post in 2012, guards and escorts for the National Archives reported that the National Treasure films have led visitors to ask questions that could only have been motivated by seeing the series. One common query: whether or not there really is a secret map on the back of the Declaration of Independence. “I call it ‘that’ movie,” guard Robert Pringle told the paper. “We get a lot of questions about the filming.”

6. THE DIRECTOR WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL WITH NICOLAS CAGE.

Both Cage and director Jon Turteltaub attended Beverly Hills High School in the late 1970s and shared a drama class together. While promoting a later film collaboration, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Cage revealed that Turteltaub had actually beat him out for the lead in a stage production of Our Town. Cage was relegated to two lines of dialogue in a bit part.

7. CAGE LIKED DOING KARAOKE DURING FILMING.

Disney Enterprises, Inc.

On a press tour for the film, Cage told reporters that he and co-star Diane Kruger bonded by going out at night and singing karaoke. “We’d go and karaoke from time to time and sort of blow it out and be completely ridiculous, which helped, I think,” he said. “I think it was some Rage Against the Machine, AC/DC and some Sex Pistols.”

8. THE SEQUEL BOOSTED ATTENDANCE AT THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES.

Popular films often have the residual effect of drawing interest to the real-life locations or subject matter incorporated into their plots. Mackinac Island, site of the 1982 romance Somewhere in Time, has become a perennial tourist spot. The same influence was true of National Treasure and its 2007 sequel, both of which apparently contributed to an uptick in attendance at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

9. NATIONAL TREASURE 3 COULD STILL HAPPEN.

It’s been over a decade since National Treasure: Book of Secrets hit theaters, but Cage is still optimistic fans of the series could see another installment. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly in 2016, the actor said a third film was in development, with the convoluted writing process slowing things down.

“I do know that those scripts are very difficult to write, because there has to be some credibility in terms of the facts and fact-checking, because it was relying on historical events,” Cage said. “And then you have to make it entertaining. I know that it’s been a challenge to get the script where it needs to be. That’s as much as I’ve heard. But they’re still working on it.”